Excavating mechanism



w. M. VENABLE. EXCAVATING MECHANISM. APPLICATION FILED jULYI, 1918.

1,376,053. Patented Apr. 26, 1921.

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"MM. 4 M B r; W WZZW- W. M. VENABLE.

EXCAVATING MECHANISM! APPLICATION FILED JULY 1, 1918.

1,376,053. Patented A r; 26, 1921.

3 SHEETSSHEET 2- wmaass mvzu'ron.

WPM. VENABLE.

EXCAVATING MECHANISM. APPLICATION FILED JULYI. 191,8.

Patented Apr. 26, 1921.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

WITNESSES rare COME/ANY, A CORPORATION 01? NEW JERSEY.

EXCAVATING LEEGEANISIH.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. as, 1221..

Application filed July 1, 1918. Serial No. M2338.

To r/JZ whomit may concern Be it known that 1, WILLIAM MjVnN- nnnn a citizen of the United States residing at Pittsburgh, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Excavating Mechanism, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to excavating mechanism and particularly to that class of apparatus commonly known as grab or eX- cayating buckets having segmental scoop elements operated by cables. This invention has for its principal object the provision of a supporting means for the bucket which may be independent of the operating cables for supporting the bucket above the ground in closed position so that its charge may be retained while the operating cable is slackened. Further objects of the invention are the provision of a supporting means for the above purpose that may be used on a single line bucket in cooperation with a movable cableway carriage. whereby the bucket may be suspended upon the cable way while the single bucket operating cable is serving as a means for manipulating the carriage; the provision of a bucket provided with. a support for the above purpose that may be discharged while suspended from such support; the. provision in an excavating bucket of a supporting means ca-- pable of supporting the bucket and holding the segments closed independently of the bucket cables. whether of the single line or two line type and designed particularly for use in connection with movable carriage which is itself arranged to be operated alone; its line of travel by the bucket cable or cables. My invention in general contemplates the provision of means having for its principal aim to improve the construction and increase the efiiciency and utility of buckets of these types. Certain embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein- Figure 1 is a side elevation with certain portions cut away, of a preferred form of the invention applied to a bucket of the single line type; Fig. 2 is a front elevation on a reduced scale of the top portion of the bucket shown in Fi g. 3, showing the bucket connected toa cableway carriage mounted upon an inclined cableway; Fig. 3 is a side elevationoi' the bucket and support shown forth in the above patent.

in Fig. 1, showing the bucket in closing posltlon; and Fig. 4 represents a modification of the preferred form of the invention shown in Fig. 1. i 1

It is a purpose of this invention to provide either a two line or single line bucket witha supporting means adapted to hold the bucket in closed position independently of the operating cables or holding lines so that the lines may be slackened without causing the bucket to be dumped or lowered, while utilizing the lines as an operating means for the carriage or other movable device to be engaged by said supporting means.

But the preferred application of the invention is in connection with a bucket of the single-line type and such type is illustrated in the drawings wherein the bucket is operated in cooperation with a cableway carriage which is like-wise operated by the same single line of the bucke Referring toFigs. l, 2 and 3, the bucket therein illustrated is of the single line type and of the same general construction as that illustrated in my United States Patent No. 1,258,838., wherein the bucket comprises a pair 0 scoop segments 25 and 26 hinged together by a hinge shaft 27. The outer corners of the bucket are supported by corner bars 28 and 29 pivoted at their lower ends to the segments 25 and 26 respectively, and pivoted together at their upper ends by a pivot shaft 30.

The scoop segments are operated by raising and lowering the hinge 2'? while sup porting the upperends ot the corner Ears. This'operation is accomplished by means of a sheave-block 2-31 carrying sheaves 32 around which the operating cable 33 is reeved. A second set of sheaves 34 is pivoted to the corner bars 29 and the operating cable is so reeved around the sheaves 32 and 34 that the sheaves 32 will be drawn. upward when one end of the operatingcable is pulled. The

' other end of the cable is secured to the cableway carriage to be hereinafter described. The bucket therefore works in the bight of the line. The sheaves 32 are connected to the hinge 27 by means oii'a pair of folding links 35 and 36 whose operation is fully set Briefly these links are so disposed that when "folded, and when the bucket segments are in open position, the sheaves 32 will be held adjacent the hinge 27 as shown in Fig. 8 and will so remain adjacent the hinge 27 when the sheaves have been drawn into their uppermost position shown in Fig. 1. lVhen it is desired to discharge the contents of the bucket the lever 37 is actuated by a trip line, not shown, so as to move the upper ends of the levers 35 and 36, clockwise so as to displace their relative position so that the levers may unfold and permit the hinge 27 to drop while the sheaves 32 remain where they were before the release lever 37 was actuated. This dropping of the hinge 27 causes the scoop segments to open,-and if the operating cable is subsequently slackened the sheaves 32 will be permitted to lower and fold the links again so that the sheaves will-again raise the hinge when the operating cable is pulled or wound up. The path of the lowering sheaves is partly determined by the radius rod 38 pivoted to the segment 26 and carrying the sheave-lock 31 at its free end.

7 t will be seen from the foregoing brief description and the more detailed description oi the bucket in the above patent, that the bucket be raised and lowered, and the scoop segments opened and closed by the operation of the single operating line. 7

One ob ect of this invention is to provide a supportmg means for the bucket ust doscribed, or one of similar type, that will support the bucket in closed position independentl of the sin le operatin cable and to y 23 L h 3 provide a supporting connection between the bucket and a cableway carriage that may be moved in opposite directions along the cableway by the manipulation of the same single operating cable used in completely manipulating the bucket.

To carry out this end a cableway carriage 39, Fig. 2, is used in conjunction with an inclined cableway to, any type or" cabieway carriage may be used that is adapted to be moved down the cableway in one direction by theaction of gravity, and be pulled up the cableway by an operating cable, but for the purpose of this invention the type of cableway illustrated and described in co- ,pending application for United States Letters Patent Serial No. 219,481 filed February 27th, 1918, isthe ype preferred. A diagranr way, so that i may roll along the cableway in either d rection upon the wheels.

A; pin 4:2 is secured to the carriage housing and is adapted to receive one end of the operating cable, which is reeved through the bucke ments between the stop hooks and -17, thecompleteogeration or which is fully set forth in the above mentioned application. The precise construction and operation 01 the cablewaycarriage is not fully set forth ierein, because it is only necessary to have a carriage which may be of any preferred construction that will receive a bucket bail,

and which can be manipulated back and forth on the cableway by an operating cable.

Referring again to the bucket and broadly to Figs. land 3, it will be seen that the bucket is provided with a bail as, which is provided with a substantially vertically disposed slot l9, through which the corner bar pivot shaft 80 extends so that the bail 48 may have limited vertical movement. The lower end the bail is provided with hook 50 which is adapted to engage a pin 51, carried in a recess 52, mounted in the sheave block Below the hook 50 the bail is provided with a downwardly projecting nose 53, which engages the sheave-block 31 in such manner as to guide the bail into supporting -56, which is secured to or integral with the head block 57 which supports the upper sheave 34. The slot 5-; and pin cooperate to properly position the lower end of the bail, so that when the sheave-block 31, see ig. S, is drawn up by theoperating cable 33, it will automatically carry the pin '51 into proper engagement with the hook 530, as illustrated in Fig. 1.

It will be seen from the foregoing, assum ing that the bucket and the bail are in the position shown'in Fig. 1, that when the release lever 37 is actuated to relatively displace the link elements 36 and '35, so as to cause them to unfold and drop the hinge 27, that the sheave-block 31 will be retained in its uppermost position and that the bucket will be supported in open position by means of the bail. It will also be seen that when the parts are in the position illustrated. in Fig. 1, and the bail is supported as shown upon a support such as a cableway carriage, see Figs. 1 and Q the entire weight of theclosed bucket is being supported by the bail through the medium of the sheaveblock 31 and the foldiing link connection between the sheave-block 31 and the bucket hinge 27.

One of the principal objects of thisinvention is to provide a bucket that may be raised and lowered, opened and closed, and moved laterally in opposite directions by the manipulation of a single line operating cable. To this end, the carriage of the type described is used and as previously setforth, one end of the operating cable is secured to the carriage and this reeved downward through the bucket and upward through the pulley 43 on the carriage 39, and thence to a suitable operating drum not shown. The carriage is adapted tobe oper ated between certain separate fixed stops, not shown, secured to the inclined cableway 40. When the carriage is at its upper terminal and in engagement with the upper stop of the cable, the carriage is in the position above the point where the bucket is to be loaded, and when the carriage is against the lowermost stop, the bucket is above the place where it is to be discharged. Assuming these operative positions, and that the carriage is pulled against the upper stop, and that the bucket has been lowered in open position to the ground, the operation of the complete apparatus is as follows:

When the operating cable is wound up upon the operating drum, not shown, sheave-block 31 will be raised by the operating cable, and after the bucket jaws or segments have closed slightly, the parts will assume the position shown in Fig. 3. Further drawing up of the operating cable will cause the parts of the bucket to assume the positionillustrated in Fig. 1, which shows the bucket in closed position. Still further winding up of the operating cable will raise the bucket until the bail 4:8 enters into holding engagement with the hook 455 of the cableway carriage 39., After this engagement the bail 48 will serve to entirely support the weight of the bucket and its charge independent of the operating,

cable-33. Slack may now be played out on the operating cable and after the hook 17 of the carriage has been released as in the manner disclosed, in the above mentioned oo-pending application, the carriage will move down the cable by the force of gravity, and the bucket may be dumped at any point along the cableway by simply actuating the release lever 37, by means of a trip line, not shown, or the carriage may be permitted to travel down the cableway until it engages the lower stop where the bucket may be dumped by the operation of the release lever 37, or by releasing the bail from the carriage in the manner set forth in the above mentioned co-pending application, lowering the closed bucket into contact with the earth so that the folding links 36 and 35 may be actuated by the force of gravity as set forth in the above mentioned Patent N 0. 1,258,833.

After thebucket has been dumped, if it has been lowered to dump, the operating cable is again wound up so as to raise the bale into contact with book 4L5, where it automatically latches and releases the hook 46 of thecarriage from the lower stop. The carriage is thenfree to be drawn up the cableway of the operating cable, where I the bucket may again be lowered and reupon a horizontal cableway by attaching a cable to the left end of the carriage, so that the carriage may be pulled to the left by.

the cable instead of using the force of gravity.

The bail-illustrated in Fig. 4 represents a slight modification from that shownin Fig. 1 and like it is well adapted to the single line bucket, and operates in substantially the same way, the various parts that correspond to the parts of the structure in Fig. 3 being indicated by similar reference nu- 'merals with. the addition of a prime mark in each case. Qbviously, the showing in Fig.

.2 likewise applies to this modification,

which latter, as does the structure in Fig. 1, illustrates a bucket operated in the bightof a single line, a sheave being secured to one of the bucket segments and having a running connection with the line. a As already indicated this line pereferably has one end fixedly secured to the trolley and in the direction of its length passes over a sheave in the trolley after being reeved about the bucket sheaves. The arrangement as shown is particularly advantageous in that the bucket rises in the bight of the line in its opening movement to absorb the shock in the opening of the scoop segments and thereby relieve the metal bucket parts of undue strain. The modified hail of Fig. 4 presents certain advantages, over that of Fig. 1, namely, it offers a somewhat simpler construction, is more easily made, and in view of the. peculiar conformation of the blocker extension 31, which is at all times above the hinge, the bucket is enabled to sink deeper into the material without impairing the efficiency of the folding mechanism. Assuming this construction in closed: position as disclosed in Fig. 4, and that the bail has been disengaged from the trolley,

it will be understood that until the cable is slackened the bail occupies the position so as to maintain the segments shown although the segments 25 and 26" open upon the unfolding of the toggle members, thisposition being maintained by the seating of pin 59 against the ston'shoulder 60. Coincident with the slackening of the cable, the latch hook 50 disengages itself fromthe pin 51, thereby permitting the lowering of the members 31 and 39/ and the consequent folding of the toggle device, as already set forth. In this disengaging movement the bail moves downwardly in i inclined direction guided by the-pin 55, and the pin 30 as does the bail in Fig. 1. In the final stage of the closing movement oi the scoop segments, the pin first seats against the stop 60 and pivotally insures the later locking of the latch 50 with the pin 51.

It is obvious that many changes may be made in the details of-construction without departing from the spirit of the invention,

hinge for joining the segments so that they may be closed when the hinge is elevated and opened when the hinge is lowered, a

sheave-block, means for connecting the sheave-block with the hin e whereby the hinge may be raised thereoy toclose the bucket, a support, an operating cable for raising and lowering the sheave-block, bail for connecting the sheave-block with the support wherebythe sheave-block'is supportec closed position independently of the operating cable, and means for permitting the lowering of the hinge to open the segments while the sheave-block is thus supported.

2. In an excavating buclrehthe combination of'a pair of bucket segments, a frame therefor, a hinge pivotally connecting said segments, the segments closing wn the hinge is elevated and opening when the .hinge' is lowered, cable-actuated hinge-open ating mechanism in said frame adapted to elevate the h1nge and close the segments, and

- a' bucket-suspending bail positioned in said bucket-suspending bail segments, bucket o crating means he 1 frame and constructed to detachab-ly engage with said mechanism and hold the segments closed when the cable is slackened, said seg ments capable of opening movement in the bail suspended position of the bucket;

3. In an em. ting bucket, the combina tion of a pair 01 bucket segments, a frame therefor, a hinge pivotally connecting said segments, the segments closing when the hinge is elevated and opening when the hinge is lowered, cable-actuating higas-operating, mechanism in said frame adapted to elevate the hinge and close s nents, and a pos .oned in said frame constructed to detachably en ge u I n 1 1 3L with said mechanism ane hold tne ,e 'n nts closed when the cable is slac nod, and a cable for said mechanism, a pa A it or said mechanism interposed between the hinge and said bail when the bucket is susp nded and relatively movable to lower the hi and open the segments, said bail ca able of guided movement in said frame tor a 7 from said mechanism upon the slaclrenm said cable.

4:. In an excavating bucket, the combinm tion of a pair of scoop segments, a frame therefor, a hinge pivot-ally connecting said --x.tension disp sed above the hinge provided with a movaole connection :th hmge, a bucket holding and -closiir means for said bucket opei movable supporting bail in said adapted'to disconnecti ly engage with said extension and support the bucket in closed position independently of said cabl means, said connection 'movable to "open the segments and thereby permit the disconnection of the bail and said extension.

5. In combination, a cableway carriage, a bucket having hinged scoop members, a'cable for supporting the buc from the carriage, a frame'for the bucket pivoted to the scoop members, the bucket adapted to open when the hinge is lowered and to close when the hinge is raised, cable actuated means for raising the hinge, and a bail for supporting the bucket from the carriage independently of the cable support, said bail detachably connecting with "1e hinge raising means, the hinge -being ca 1 it t WILLIAM M. VENABLE. 

